Thomas Tuchel has held clear-the-air talks with Jude Bellingham following a World Cup spat after England's 2-1 victory over Norway. Bellingham, the former Birmingham City star now at Real Madrid, scored a brace in the win.
Tuchel Addresses the Situation
Speaking to talkSPORT ahead of the Argentina semi-final in Atlanta at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Tuchel said: “No problem. I spoke to the whole team after, which was basically the same message. And I explained it again yesterday to just move on. Then, straight away, we talked about Argentina. Our comments come from the same place — from having the edge when competition is on.”
Bellingham's Reaction Explained
Tuchel elaborated on Bellingham's response: “He (Bellingham) was just confronted with the negative side. I called him a world-class player. I said he had produced world-class actions again — that the mentality of this team is outstanding. All of that was not part of the question. So he was confronted with, ‘What do you think? The coach said you were sloppy’. I’d maybe bite back if I came from 120 minutes, scored two, gave everything. It’s a normal reaction for a player of his mindset.”
Kane Defends Team Unity
Captain Harry Kane, who has one more goal than Bellingham at the tournament, also addressed the furore surrounding Gabriel Clarke's interviews with the German coach and Real Madrid talisman. Kane told ITV: “When you play a game like that, and get asked a question straight after the final whistle when he hasn’t known what the manager has said, it’s like, what do you want Jude to say? It’s easy to try to create this division, it seems to be an English thing to do at these tournaments. But we’re where we are because of our togetherness. Not just the players but the coach, staff and everyone involved.”
Upcoming Semi-Final
England face Argentina at 8pm on Wednesday, with the winner going on to play Spain in the final on Sunday night.
